DDA directors voted 8-0 Monday to request that the Kalamazoo City Commission pay for the position out of the city's general fund. The motion said that the DDA supports continuation of a downtown community policing officer but can no longer fund the position.

The action comes after an Aug. 27 meeting in which the DDA board delayed a decision on whether to terminate a contract with the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety for the downtown CPO before the end of the year. The DDA pays $94,000 annually to fund the salary and fringe benefits of officer Chrix Hancox, a position it has funded for six years.

"The motion is that the DDA is supportive of a community policing officer but cannot afford one," said DDA member Bob Miller, who chairs a subcommittee that recommended cutting DDA funding for Kalamazoo's downtown CPO, along with making changes to the DDA's parking budget, which the board approved in August.

Schmitt said he would abstain because he has not seen the budget as a whole and has not talked to all stakeholders.

"My personal viewpoint is regardless of who funds the CPO that this is essential to stop the deterioration of our downtown," Schmitt said.

Dean Hauck, owner of Michigan News Agency, said that with the DDA's funding constraints it can no longer financially support a CPO. She said the DDA's money needs to be used wisely, for enrichment of downtown cultural life to bring people downtown.

During a discussion in August about the community policing officer, KDPS Chief Jeff Hadley told DDA members that he will have to adjust how public safety services are delivered downtown.

"You're not going to have a dedicated person, a Chris Hancox ... There's a loss of continuity from one person to the next. You may not have the same person at your safety committee every month," Hadley said.

Hadley also noted at the time that KDPS was responsible for about $3.5 million of the $6 million in budget cuts the city is making to erase a deficit through early retirements and strategic realignment, amounting to a reduction of 28 officers.

Downtown resident Patti Owens at Monday's meeting encouraged DDA members to have conversations with city officials now, as they formulate budgets, so that the downtown officer is funded.

Emily Monacelli is a government and taxes reporter for the Kalamazoo Gazette. Contact her at emonacel@mlive.com. Follow her on Twitter.